Ireland wants 1 million EVs on the road by 2030

The Irish government has presented a climate protection plan that also includes targets for electrification in the transport sector. A total of almost one million electric vehicles are to be on the country’s roads by 2030.

According to the government in Dublin, 845,000 of these should be electrically powered passenger cars, 95,000 vans and 1,500 electric buses. Currently, around 45,000 electric vehicles are registered in Ireland. Overall, the implementation of the climate change plan is expected to reduce emissions in the transport sector by between 42 and 50 per cent. In 2018, transport was responsible for 12.2 megatonnes of CO2, equivalent to 2.5 tonnes per capita, according to the document.

This is to be achieved on the one hand with the aforementioned one million electric vehicles, but also with more biofuels for the remaining internal combustion vehicles. In addition, walking, cycling and public transport are to be strengthened – according to the plan, half a million journeys a day are to be made by these three modes of transport.

To enable greater electrification in the transport sector, an expansion of the charging infrastructure is planned, among other things. In over 70 measures for transport, besides general items such as a “greater EV infrastructure rollout”, the plan mentions more concrete measures such as a public destination charger network, but also a promotion of private charging points.

In addition, there are purchase premiums for electric vehicles in Ireland. As reported, the current subsidy for plug-in hybrids will end next year. According to the government, it expects electric vehicles to reach cost parity with internal combustion vehicles in the mid-2020s. Range anxiety is cited as another hurdle to a rapid transition – which is to be addressed both with improvements to the vehicles and the denser charging station network.

Across all sectors, the Climate Action Plan envisages 475 measures and a 51 per cent reduction in CO2 by 2030 – the baseline year is 2018. However, Irish media criticise the sometimes wide ranges – in electricity, emissions are to be reduced by between 62 and 81 per cent, but there are also less ambitious targets, for example in agriculture (where only 22 to 30 per cent savings are required).

rte.ie, gov.ie (Climate Protection Plan for download, transport sector from p. 145 onwards)